Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra, 128GB, Cosmic Gray - Fully Unlocked (Renewed)

I was looking to pickup a budget phone around 3-400 dollars. When I started doing some research, I noticed this deal, where I could get a top-of-the-line phone from 2 years ago for less than half price. Spec-wise, this device is equivalent to the s22 ultra with very minor exceptions (EXTREMELY minor, like camera and variable refresh rate).Comparing this device to all the current budget phones from Google, Apple, Samsung, Nord, Moto, TCL, etc., this device seems to be the best value for the price. Between the refresh rate, battery, AMOLED HDR display (boasting 1400 nits of brightness) , stereo speaker audio, 12gb ram, security/software updates (for at least another couple of years at the time of writing), this phone is absolutely killer.The refurbished part scared me at first, as I normally buy all my devices new, but I have no complaints here. My device genuinely feels brand new.My only complaints about this phone are mostly personal problems rather than the phone being faulty. For example, I kind of hate how clear the front-facing camera is. I may need to get new glasses or something, but the picture is more detailed than looking in the mirror. When I take a selfie, I see all the disgusting blemishes in high detail (I'll work on being less ugly, but regardless, it maybe something to note if you take a lot of selfies, you may need some software to blend the photos a little better).Another complaint is the jarring effect of the main camera trying to switch focus. I don't take very many pictures, but if you're trying to take a fast picture, that might be an issue.The display does not allow for 144hz and 1440p at the same time. It's kind of a bummer, but I'm just excited to finally leave my 60hz life behind.Opening a couple of games, this phone performs extremely well, but I did find it odd that it did not allow for higher graphics options on games like Genshin Impact or Diablo Immortal, since it defaulted these games to high graphics rather than highest (not that I play waifu simulator or Diablo Immoral, but I did need to benchmark my credit card somewhere).Lastly, this may be just my shipment, but the cord did not work for transferring data from my old Note 8 to the S20. Fortunately, you can transfer everything wirelessly, and the cord I got works for fast charging. It's just an odd issue worth noting.Overall, I'm extremely happy with this device. I don't normally write reviews, but here I am writing a book on my experience with it, so maybe that's a testimony in itself. Hopefully this helps someone on-the-fence about picking this one up.Edit: this was purchased from Edge Cellular

1400 dollar phone for a couple hundred dollars. It's no longer supported with regular updates, but my last phone was an S9 ultra and I'd still have it but the battery was dying and is now extremely difficult to charge. The old S9 updates stopped almost 3 years ago. This phone is a stop gap, but it works well. I could have spent less money, but I like the fact that it can store over 1.5 TB with an appropriate SD card. No need to depend on the cloud for every little thing. I however could backup everything on both the cloud and my phone. I most likely replace this phone in 2 years if necessary. Also this phone was super easy to setup. But updating passwords was time consuming. It's a little bigger that my old phone but I can work with it. Battery life is awesome (to use a 90s catch phase). Reception is good and the wifi Hotspot works well. No need to use hotel wifi as it allows the my fire tv to stream easily in most locations.

Service: Firstly, I'm going to have to start with the poor service I had gotten from "GreenTech Refurbished". I bought this phone refurbished from them in, supposedly, excellent condition. Basically meaning that it wouldn't have any scratches on the back of the phone or on the screen. Unfortunately, the phone had very clear signs of image burn-in. This was disheartening, seeing as to how I paid for a higher amount to get a product in better condition. It wasn't even advertised anywhere on the listing that it would potentially have display issues, much less actual burn-in. I had contacted them on the issue, and apparently they're not able to offer replacements, they gave me a choice of returning in for a full refund or keeping for a small partial refund equal to the difference of their excellent condition and good condition phones. I ended up going with the partial refund, because fortunately, it doesn't get in the way of any of my use with it. I would not recommend buying from them.Product: Now for those who want to know about the product itself and whether or not to buy it. The display is incredible, even in 2023's standards. I use the phone at 120hz with the lower resolution because I don't watch much media on it and mainly use it for social and gaming. It supports 120hz refresh rate at 1080p resolution and 60hz at 1440p. The display itself is another great part of the phone, the colors you get with it are just amazing. It is an AMOLED display with HDR10, which really helps with contrast between your blacks and whites and entire color spectrum.The phone comes equipped with 12gb of ram, allowing for not only a stutter-less gaming experience, but also quick multi-tasking with apps. I've really enjoyed the phone for the time I've had it, it's quick with any task I try to use it for, not once have I had an app lag or slow down. The crisp screen and smooth motion gives the premium experience you'd want with a more expensive phone. The only real downsides I could even think of saying about this device is that it is an older phone, so software support won't last too much longer as of the time of writing this review; and this display doesn't have some of the more modern feature that the newer Galaxy phones have, such as Dynamic Refresh Rate, which basically optimizes the phone's use of the 120hz refresh rate.Overall, I'd recommend getting this phone over newer ones at the same price point and even older flagships, it's a great price for all that you get with it, premium user experience, feel, and the camera is amazing even with it being a few years old.Though, if you're buying it refurbished like I did, I don't recommend buying it from "GreenTech Refurbished".